The American Infinity Tour feat. Soilwork – REVIEW

We recently attended the Joliet date of Soilwork’s “The American Infinity Tour” with Jeff Loomis, Blackguard, Bonded By Blood and Hatchet. You can check out our review, after the break.

Tonight’s show was a variety pack in metal covering all realms past, present, and future. Cali-style thrashers Hatchet started and proudly wore their influences on their sleeve. The sound harks 80’s thrash through and through. Hell, even their appearance did as well. I had mixed opinions on their set, the energy and vibe was there but their a tad bit short on memorable songwriting. Maybe(and hopefully) with time this will all be fine tuned in the near future as the potential is definitely there.

More thrash continued to pummel our senses only this time in the vein of Bonded By Blood. For those who don’t know, BBB get their name from the classic 1985 of the same name, only written by thrash legends Exodus. These guys brought it all to the table, fast and heavy tunes with surprisingly memorable bass lines and sing-a-long thrash lyrics that stick in your head the moment you heard them. An honorable mention goes to bassist Jessie Sanchez as this man’s talent definitely deserves more attention. BBB were the first band to even get a good ol fashioned mosh pit going and it’s the little things like that that are required for the sounds of thrash.

Apparently Blackguard is the band that is on “EVERY TOUR”. I only recall maybe seeing them once and I go to plenty of shows. Their sound seems to be torn between different ends of music as their deemed too heavy for fans of melodic stuff and also deemed too poppy for those into much more obscure sounding music. However, this definitely didn’t affect their reception at this show as the approval was strong for these guys and even though I couldn’t tell you an album name from them, I thought they put on a fun show worth seeing. They got a new album coming out soon they mentioned as well and more touring so if this seem’s like your cup of tea, keep those eyes and ears open!

Natural born shredder Jeff Loomis did exactly what he was born and raised to do: SHRED! Jeff was the former lead guitarist for the cult following based metal act, Nevermore. A key factor in what made that previous band so great was this man. When he made his exit from his previous group, there was no doubt in mind if he would survive on his own. Where most shredders today want to constant noodling trying to impress Necrophagist, Jeff is all about the flow, the beauty of the song and letting his solos sing in place of actual vocals. All youngsters that only know about crazy technical shred might want to take a back seat and see what this guy can offer as he shows there is much more to shredding than noodling all night!

Legends of the metal scene in Sweden for almost 2 decades, Soilwork have never stopped growing. Whether it’s their expanding fan base, or the sounds of their music exploring new territory, these guys have never stopped being consistent. Vocalist Bjorn Strid’s voice is lightning in a bottle. His execution is flawless and would make singers of American Idol want to retire. This crowd was definitely a prime Soilwork crowd as the pits and sing-a-longs were in prime form during their 90 minute stint. New songs like “Spectrum Of Eternity” and “Long Live The Misanthrope” from this year’s double-album, “The Living Infinite” are already blending in well with older favorites like “Stabbing The Drama” and “As We Speak”. Rare gems “Possessing The Angels” and “Weapon Of Vanity” were played too much surprise and went over just as well as the rest. Might I add that drummer Dirk Verbeuren is a powerhouse of a drummer. I think he might be even an even tighter player live than he already is on record. I was wowed! For any Soilwork fan of any era, there is something here for you in this set. Mark those words! All grounds are covered so get on out and catch this tour! These Swedish maestros don’t play here all the time so make it happen!

Information about the tour…
Tour: The American Infinity Tour
Bands: Soilwork, Jeff Loomis, Blackguard, Bonded By Blood, Hatchet
Reviewer: Nicholas Wier
Date: March 25, 2013
Venue: Mojoes in Joliet, IL